


Clockwork

by IAmTheUltimateGleek



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, Flashbacks, Memories, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-22
Updated: 2018-07-15
Packaged: 2019-05-27 00:33:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,347
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15012797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IAmTheUltimateGleek/pseuds/IAmTheUltimateGleek
Summary: "Time is not measured by seconds, nor minutes, but rather in the moments created throughout life" -AnonymousThere are memories Moira could never live without, despite how desperately she wants to forget them.





	1. Another Place Another Time

Despite what many may believe to be true, Oasis has never truly stood as the pinnacle of discovery that it claimed to be. At least not to the extent many may believe.

The founders, may they be remembered, described the city as quote, “A testament to the ingenuity of humanity”. A safe haven for those whose brilliance could not be understood by the masses, yet still craved to surpass their limitations. A beacon of both beauty and intelligence located in one of the harshest deserts known to man.

The City of Impossibilities, that on the surface, almost managed to reflected the same brilliant values that Moira had dedicated her entire practice, her entire life, to. 

Almost.

High above the bustling city life, hidden within the only unmonitored lab in the entire district, Minister of Genetics, Dr. Moira O’Deorain, could not have felt more unimpressed by the display.

The university’s main tower arguably had the best view of Oasis, standing stories higher than any other free standing structure in the world, with its front half capturing a picturesque view of where the sun met the skyline every night. Each panel of glass reflected the sky's vast and nearly blinding array of gold and red, casting a mesmerizing kaleidoscope like sparkling colors dancing back across the surrounding buildings. 

Ensuring that every evening managed to display an unforgettable show of scenic excellence. 

Moira was certain that there were countless individuals on the floors below her admiring the sky. The majority in fact were probably beginning to set aside their pens, tablets, and general worries and stress in favor of taking a moment to drink in the beauty of their city. The same way they would tomorrow and the day after and so on.

Wasteful repetition that operated like clockwork.

With a quiet ‘tsk’, Moira allowed her gaze to fall away from the steadily darkening sky. Her hands resuming their restlessly fiddling with her watch as she turned the crown absentmindedly. 

There was nothing particularly flashy or functionally beneficial about the accessory, just a small silver piece that despite appearing pristine outwardly had long since lost its ability to keep the time. 

While beautiful, it mostly stood as a parallel to remind the doctor how she usually felt herself.

Useless.

Oasis certainly had more than enough to offer to help keep her hands idle. However, at the moment the only thing capable of maintaining the doctor’s attention were memories. Ones meant to be pushed to the farthest recesses of her mind, not at the forefront where they continued to cloud her focus. 

Impeding her judgement. Making the rhythmic ticking of her broken watch sound as though it were at a deafening volume.

Memories she wanted nothing more than to forget.

“Dr. O’Deorain?”

The sound of her secretary’s voice felt muted, farther away as though underwater. The chip along her headset flashed briefly as the intercom rang to life. Waiting for her to respond.

“Dr. O’Deorain?”

~17 Years Ago~

“Dr. O’Deorain? Could I borrow you for a moment?”

Moira turned her head away from the tablet in her hands. Her face momentarily losing its hard look of concentration in favor of a rare smile. 

“Of course, Dr. Ziegler”

Seeing the two together was always a sight to behold, but never an uncommon one. 

Gibraltar’s base was certainly large enough to keep the two from crossing paths, but the real shock was more so when they weren’t together.

While Captain Amari loved to tease the two over how often she and many others saw them constantly wandering the halls during their lunch breaks and late nights, she often times held a knowing look that only mothers seemed to be able to master.

As though she saw things no one else could see.

The respect the doctors carried for one another was plausible in the air in which they surrounded themselves. Where Moira spoke with strength that dared anyone to deny her intelligence, Angela radiated a kindness and power that was nearly blinding both in and out of the war zone. Contrasting souls that matched in passion and genius. 

Many, mostly Ana, liked to joke that the two were practically joined at the hip, almost always seeking one another out against the sea of similarly brilliant minds. However, with the results they were able to produce together, there was hardly any room for complaint. 

Just as they were now, no one bothered to spare the duo more than a quick polite greeting as they made their way down one of the corridors leading towards the outer loading zones.

During the comfortable silence where only the sound of Angela’s low heels clicking against the pristine tile could be heard, Moira couldn’t help but risk more than a few glances at her companion. 

The medic was one of the few people that she found made Overwatch worth the investment of her time, aside from the funding of course. A capable, strong, beautiful woman who could match her wit in everything and anything they decided to discuss. 

The breakthroughs they were slowly beginning to generate as a unified front were barely scratching the surface of what the redhead believed they could achieve with more time.

From an outsider’s perspective, one might even go so far as to call the “appreciative” way Moira’s eyes trailed over every aspect of Angela’s form as much more than clinical. Most might even assume that Moira had a minor infatuation with the medic. 

While they would technically be partially, completely, right, Moira had long since made peace with her decision to never broach the subject. 

Professional atmosphere and all that.

However, that didn’t mean she still couldn’t reap the benefits of maintaining an uncharacteristically charming work relationship with the other woman. On days when Angela was particularly kind, Moira would catch herself replaying the idea of them both considering one another a friend. 

Work friends and nothing more.

After a few more moments of walking, the two finally made it outside near the main loading docks, just above the spot where the ocean’s waves crashed against the cliff’s edge. Angela moved far enough ahead so that she was standing before Moira with her back turned. Her gaze focused on the setting sun.

“The view is lovely isn’t it?”

There was a softness to her tone that Moira found to be typically reserved for their occasional 3am discussions. Some nights she would find Angela all but passed out on top of her desk, only to stir at Moira’s arrival and quietly thank her for the coffee. Other times it was Angela who would sneak into her side of the research center only to quietly hand over the caffeine filled mug with a tired smile.

Workaholics that both operated in time like gearheads, each assisting the other to continue on.

This time though there were no florescent medical wing lights or dreary low lab lights to illuminate Angela’s blonde hair, but rather the glow of the fading sun. 

Call it a cliché, but Moira actually could feel her throat become incredibly dry as an almost impossible, yet visible and fitting, halo of gold surrounded Angela’s head. 

Just like a true angel.

She nearly voiced the observation before just barely catching the words as they tipped against the edge of her tongue. The last thing she needed was to make the other woman uncomfortable.

“While I’m certainly enjoying the view, I’m curious as to whether or not this was the only reason you requested my presence, Dr. Ziegler?”

Angela turned her head just enough to stick her tongue out at the other woman. Just as she always did when Moira seemed less than impressed by things she found to be “magnificent”.

“I doubt the oh so ‘grand’ world of genetics will mind if I steal you away for a moment”

Moira gave a playful huff of her own, but still did not move to stand beside the other woman. Instead she chose to wait. Already sensing that there was something on Angela’s mind. 

“So long as you are the company I am keeping then I suppose I can bear such a distraction”

Her voice held a dramatic tone of teasing reserved for Angela alone.

They stood in another comfortable silence for a moment. Listening to the dull background sounds of seagulls flying overhead and waves crashing far below.

Eventually, Angela spun on her heel, peering upwards to finally meet Moira’s gaze. The halo surrounding her now seemed to frame her face with an unfairly complimentary light that caused the blonde’s ponytail to practically blind them both.

Moira felt her face flush slightly before coughing into her hand and diverting her attention over top of Angela’s head to instead stare at the sinking sun.

Angela spoke again.

“You mentioned once before that you use to watch the sunsets back in Dublin. Just over the coast near your hometown”

Moira did her best to bite her tongue hard enough to prevent her surprise from showing. 

While it wasn’t often, there were some dreary early mornings when Moira would mumble to herself in the comfort of her lab. Pretending that she was recounting old childhood memories to an enraptured audience if only to keep herself awake. 

The fact that Angela had overheard any of it felt mortifying.

Regardless of her effort, it seemed as though the emotions still showed on her face enough for Angela’s smile to drop into a look of concern.

“Im sorry if that was personal”

It was, but because it was Angela, Moira found that she was not upset in the way the other doctor probably assumed she was. More than anything else she simply felt embarrassed.

“There’s no need to apologize, Dr. Ziegler. If anything I should take this as a notice to stop speaking to myself”

Angela’s smile returned, if a bit more bashfully than before.

“Well I did enjoy getting to know more about you, Moira”

The use of her first name caught the redhead off guard as Angela gave another gentle laugh. The kind that suddenly made it abundantly clear as to why so many soldiers tried so hard to win over the doctor’s affection. There was something about the sound that felt precious in a way that nothing on Earth could ever hope to recreate. 

It was so devastatingly beautiful in fact, that Moira almost missed what Angela said next.

“If you’d be willing to, I think I’d like to know even more over dinner?”

There was a beat where Moira momentarily believed her heart had suffered an arrhythmia. The wave of adrenaline and nerves made her arms feel numb. Her tongue seemingly lost its ability to function as well while the brilliant nerves in her brain tried to comprehend what had just been said.

“Din…dinner, as in a work dinner?”

“I was thinking more along the lines of a date?”

Angela sounded uncertain as her cheeks suddenly became red with her own embarrassment. The courage it must have taken her to do what Moira could have never fathomed.

Angela Ziegler, top of her field, field medic extraordinaire, had just asked Moira O’Deorain on a date.

It took longer than she’d ever care to admit, but once Moira finally managed to process exactly what was being proposed, nothing could have stopped the smile that split across her face. She tried to reign back the obvious show of shock and excitement, but Angela had already caught a glimpse of how her teeth showed and the lines around her eyes crinkled with genuine joy.

The blonde couldn’t help her relief from showing either as she suddenly released the breath she had been aware she was holding.

“I hope that I can take that as a yes then?”

Shaking her head to regather herself, Moira cleared her throat, but allowed her now more subdued, but still giddy smile to remain.

“I would question your judgement if you were expecting any other response. It would be my privilege, Dr. Ziegler”

With a joking flourish of her hands, Moira silently congratulated herself on getting another laugh from the other woman. She would be remised to say it was not easily becoming her new favorite sound.

“While you remain as charming as always, please, call me Angela”

“As you wish, Dr. Angela” 

While her tone was teasing, Moira adored the way the other woman’s name rolled off of her tongue. Fitting against the crease of her lips and tongue like silk and relieving any lingering doubts that perhaps someone had put Angela up to this as a dare.

She was serious, they both were. They were going to go on a real date. Suddenly, both seemed to realize that the air around them was beginning to chill with the sun’s departure. 

Moira stepped back first. Making a gesture to offer Angela room besides her to return back inside the base.

“I have some case studies that I must finish working on tonight, but how does tomorrow evening sound? Drinks on me?”

Angela rolled her eyes as she moved to walk alongside the taller woman.

“So long as you allow me to cover dinner in that case”

“You’re free to try, but I’ll have you know that I can be quite stubborn”

Angela gave a startled bark of laughter before covering her mouth to quicken her pace, now walking a bit ahead of Moira. Her shoulder’s absolutely shaking with mirth.

“I assure you Moira, all of Overwatch is aware of your stubbornness. Dr. Hardass is what the recruits called you the first time you joined us on the field”

Moira gave a wry smile before hurrying to catch up to her companion. She couldn’t recall the last time she had enjoyed a game quite like theirs. 

“Oh really now? Well I certainly hope you corrected them?”

“Of course, now they call you Dr. Greatass”

“You absolute imp”


	2. Moving In

“For the time being only four former Overwatch agents seem to have responded. As for the new faces, skills range, but we remain undetermined on any certainty. Sombra's surveillance thus far though has assured me we have nothing to worry about for the time being. However-”

The deep silk like nature of Akande’s voice radiated a power Moira always found fascinating. She was no linguist, but it hardly took a doctorate to understand that the structure, texture and emphasis to each word was crafted in a way only the infamous “Doomfist” could carry. .

Moira often found his articulation to be one of the few calming notions to the slow mind numbing drawl of Oasis’s every day repetition. Today, however, despite being hidden behind the usual blackened screen of their private video call, the smile edging, trailing, within each word to be…unsettling. .

It was the hidden lift of excitement she had not witnessed since his public return to Talon. It was a warning, or perhaps more so the foretelling of an omen.

The moment ‘Overwatch’ had left Akande’s mouth, Moira had felt her entire body tense as though preparing to be struck. The longer his update continued the tighter the coil of bile in her throat tightened. It’s presence soon pressed firmly against her throat. .

Emotions the doctor had long since burned from her memory had not only returned, but settled and sank low into the center of her chest. Suffocating, constricting, and tightening around her ribs with a vice grip.

The dull pulses of numbness traveling further and further down her arms and legs were the only indicator her heart had in fact not stopped..

“I have prepared the appropriate documentation to be sent to the other Ministries tonight. We’ll have a ship prepared to retrieve you at the usual pick up. Be ready to depart by nine. Do you have any questions, doctor?”

Many, too many, but Moira allowed the silence following his inquiry to stretch on. .

She wasn’t certain her words would not fail her just yet. .

Neither of them were fools. They could see the game even without being able to watch one another. Akande was intentionally keeping his information vague. Drawing out details she didn’t need to know in place of the ones Moira desired to hear most. He was toying with her and, repeatedly, twisting the figurative knife.

Waiting for her to prove what he already knew. .

“You are well aware that it is not my preference to see to matters personally”

“I am. Just as I am also certain that you are the only one capable of assisting a high priority mission such as this”

Flattery, that was unsurprisingly completely sincere. There was no one within Talon even within reasonable comparison to Moira’s skill as a field medic. Akande was as good a sweet talker as he was a sadist when given the opportunity for cruelty. Evolutionary desires aside, Doomfist revealed in the fear surrounding the image he spent decades building for himself. Chaos, change, and progression may have been his foundations, but it was the hollow space where his empathy once laid that allowed instances such as this one to hold the severity they do.

He was waiting for her to slip up. To say something, anything, incriminating. .

Akande wanted leverage.

With practiced grace, Moira removed her hands, which had been tightly digging into the underside of her desk, to stand fully. The darkened holoscreen followed to keep her eye level.

“And what should become of my work if a former operative decides to alert the world of my involvement?”

She doesn’t say the name lingering in the back of her mind. She can’t.

The act of swallowing back the familiar bitter taste in the back of her throat alone puts enough pressure on her windpipe for Moira to worry the remains of her dinner might make a reappearance.

There would only be one person she knew, without a doubt, would have answered the call to return. For all the venom Angela had spit upon seeing the sins Blackwatch held safe behind Overwatch’s veil of heroism, Moira knew her too well. 

Angela wouldn’t be able to stay away if they truthfully had enough resources to begin countering the devastation Talon had been leaving behind left and right across the globe. She also could not even begin to fathom the lengths Ziegler would go through to expose her involvement once she realized where Moira had ended up.

“Gibraltar has remained under heavy government clearance for nearly a decade now. Should anyone breathe a word of your presence, they expose their own involvement in violating the Petra Act. And as far as the rest of Oasis’s ministries are concerned, you will be on private research excursion at the request of Volskya Industries”

He had a point. The convenience of Sombra’s new “friendship” with Volskya aside, there would truthfully be no way for anyone to prove anything without gaining attention from the United Nations. Even if they were to expose her involvement it would be asking for another global purge of arrests upon missionaries with even a drop of fancy for being a “hero”. Too many innocents would be affected. 

Through the holographic monitor, Moira could faintly hear Akande chuckling to himself. As though Moira’s concerns had becoming more and more amusing the longer she remained silent. 

“What ever happened to challenging our assumptions, doctor? Worst come to worst, we simply refile this as a ‘No Witness’ mission”

Moira could practically envision the spark of interest Akande had been nursing over the last hour reach its peak behind the soothing balm of his words. This was bait. A test. 

The doctor moved to cross her arms behind her back, seemingly to stand straighter, but in truth to hide the way her fingers had begun to anxiously twist the crown of her watch. Forcing the broken hands within to spin along with the contents of her stomach. 

She wasn’t daft. Having no witnesses ensured absolute safety to her position, to the life she had created, and to Talon’s overall likelihood of success. However, the truth of what it would mean had the reflection of herself on the darkened monitor chip into something inescapable. The emotions forcing a downwards quirk at the end of her lip and creases of tension between her brow were plain to see. 

Desperation. The inability to think. The fear…she was splitting apart. 

The remaining threads of Moira’s patience had become too taut. Every single strand was beginning to snap apart faster than she could mend them. 

However, before she could speak, or crack, or even properly force down the bile now suffocating her throat, Akande broke the silence.

“Be honest with me, doctor. None of these things are your true concern, are they?” 

In their business, or truthfully any business really, leverage was everything. 

Talon functioned not only by utilizing status, but also by relying on the ideals that knowledge could create an invisible barricade, or more so private insurance. Blackmail, threats, bribery, all the ins and outs of the practice demanded a little bit of each. 

For Akande to insinuate that he had any of those things in this moment though caused the edges of Moira’s vision to nearly blacken with rage. She could feel the crown of her watch loosen slightly from the sudden jerk of her fingers. 

“Whatever your assumptions may be, they do not reflect well”

“Then let us hope you prove me wrong. I would hate for whatever, or whoever, it is that is holding you back to become a liability” 

She could hear the shrug in his voice. The dripping condescending tone of teasing he was using to insincerely conceal a very real threat. 

The faint taste of copper was the only indication Moira had that she had bitten down hard enough on her tongue to draw blood. Something deep down within the recesses of the doctor’s chest felt as though it were sparking as though someone were hitting stone against stone in an effort to draw out a long dead fire. 

There were two crucial aspects to Akande and Moira relationship that the doctor had found to be painfully simple to understand. The first was knowing that Talon was not a single man made operation. The sheer number of individuals working around the clock daily couldn’t be managed even by a specialty ominic. It was specifically why from the moment Antonio’s lifeless body had hit the pavement of Rialto 8 years ago that The Board had begun to move their pieces backwards. Content to remain hidden in the shadows as they reset the field similarly to a game of chess. 

They needed someone for the world to fear. Rooks disguised as Kings and Queens, while the true pieces of power observed. The second was that while Doomfist may have been the one to rise as the public figurehead, within Talon he held no more power than Moira. 

They were equals. More so, they were supposed to be. 

Yet here and now, the tone of Akande’s voice made it perfectly clear that he no longer understood, or even believed such to be true. 

There was a snapping sensation only Moira could hear somewhere within her body. Whether it be her gut, heart, soul, or mind, the control she had kept in a white knuckled grip completely slipped from her grasp like water. 

“I’d rather ‘hope’ that your devastatingly large ego does not render you blind to reality ths early on in your life, Ogundimu”

Her tone was level, gaze unwavering, yet the absolute venom laced throughout every single syllable spoke volumes of the rage seething within. 

Akande had renounced his family’s name long ago. Back during the early days when he had ordered an immediate end to what remained of his bloodline. He had done well in ensuring not a soul alive could be used against him, but the cost was clear in the silence that had followed for days after. No one referred to him as such anymore. Not unless they too desired to be six feet under. 

It would be a bold understatement to say that Moira had crossed the line. 

The backlash would surely find her in the future. She was certain. However, for the moment at least, the only thing her senses could truly register was how hot her pulse, like poison beneath the surface of her crawling skin, felt. 

The screen remained silent for a long moment. 

Then the sudden sound of rich laughter cut past the tension like the slow clearing of a fog. It was hearty, honest, not unkind, and the last expected reaction she could have theorized. 

Akande was not mad, but certainly intrigued.

“Forgive me if I overstepped, doctor. The warm weather here in Numbani must finally be going to my head. I assure you, you have my trust”

The chances that he was lying to appease her were astronomically high. Moira had no doubt in her mind that the moment she hung up Akande would be scouring through whatever resources he could find to figure out what it was that had caused the ever esteemed Dr. O’Deorain losing her composure. 

“It happens to the best of us. Now, if you are finished, I was planning on retiring for the night”

“Of course. Rest well, Dr. O’Deorain. I will see you tomorrow morning. Same pick up” 

He ended the call without allowing any further opposition. 

There was another bout of silence, where Moira remained standing. Unmoving. Her expression held no tension, but her eyes were closed tightly. The crown of her watch had become unhinged. The hands no longer moved in time with the furious spinning movements of her fingers.

~14 years ago~

“Darling-“

“Don’t even try it, angel”

Moira felt a small smile tug at her lips as Angela groaned. Quite dramatically mind you. 

Even with her back turned, she could perfectly envision the way her blue eyes rolled skyward in exasperation.

“I’m trying to save you the trouble of having to say ‘you were right’ later, you know”

“Your humble nature is baffling. Truly”

The deadpan tone of her voice earned a poorly concealed snort before furious fingers began to poke at her shoulders. 

“Yes hello, pot calling the kettle?”

“I’m simply more honest than you, darling. It can’t be helped” 

When Angela laughs this time Moira manages to turn just enough over her shoulder to stick her tongue out at the blonde woman’s expression. She was both scandalized and upset enough to somehow manage a pout at the same time. 

With a soft thump, Moira laid down another moving box, from the seemingly never ending stack by the doorway, onto the floor. Her and Angela’s new lab was something extraordinary to say the least. 

Spacious, state of the art, untouched by anyone aside from the contractors themselves. Everything from the cabinets, counter tops, and equipment sat pristine and unused. Simply waiting for the endless possibilities stretched before them both. All courtesy of the generous new bout of government grants the United Nations had supplied them with. 

It was a gift, a promotion, and a silent nod of congratulations from Captain Amari to their non-public, sort of public, only really public when they slip up, relationship. How Ana had found out was anyone’s guess. For all Moira knew, Angela herself may have let it slip long ago on one of their infamous long night turned wine night-nights. 

The move to have them share a space though felt like an unspoken gesture of support. One that was appreciated by both women deeply. 

This was another step towards the future they had been unintentionally building together for what felt like a lifetime now. Changes that Moira had never imagined to be possible became the center focus of her desires as she continued to look ahead. It made the nerves that used to reside deep within her chest ease as though slowly being uncoiled away from their bruising grip on her lungs. With every morning spent awaking to someone she loved in her arms, she felt as though she were finally working towards the promises Overwatch had always promoted to the masses. 

A happier future for them both. 

With a quick spin on her heel, Moira turned back to face Angela with a rare broad smile. She opened her arms in invitation and Angela was quick to fill the space like the perfect fit to a puzzle they created. Her head resting just shy of the other doctor’s shoulder, ear pressed soundly above where her heart rested. 

“Have you truly not changed your mind?”

“Not a chance, angel”

Angela’s response became muffled as she rose onto the tips of her toes to burrow her face into the crook of Moira’s neck.

“mmpphhm…”

“I can’t hear you, my love”

“I said just because you dislike the color-“

Moira held up one finger to playfully poke at Angela’s side. 

“I don’t dislike it. I merely think a compromise could be properly negotiated is all”

Angela made an affronted noise before shaking her head, thus burying herself further into Moira’s embrace. Even going as far to playfully nip at the exposed skin beneath the redhead’s jawline before taking a full step back. Hands rested firmly on her hips.

“All black is not negotiating”

“It’s good to start bold. How do you feel about purple?” 

“With yellow? Absolutely not” 

The disgust in Angela’s tone was enough to earn a soft laugh from Moira before she moved forward. 

“You know, they say mocking your girlfriend’s sense of style is a crime of the highest regard”

“Oh really? And who by chance are ‘they’?” 

Moira pretended to tap her finger against her chin in contemplation. 

”Im sure if I were to bribe Oxton properly, our combined majority vote would work as a functional lesbian seal of approval for this claim to be made true” 

”Mein Gott, you are the worst! 

As Angela brought a hand to cover the bubbling laughter spilling past her lips, Moira closed the remaining distance between them. Dipping down low enough to press a gentle kiss on the top of the blonde’s head.

“You act as though you do not go out of your way to mock my beret every other mission”

“If anything, I’m more fascinated with the fact that you manage to look utterly magnificent with anything you put on”

She could feel Angela’s huff of embarrassment before she moved her arms to physically pull Moira closer into another hug. 

They remained that way for some time. The ticking of the clock on the far wall and occasional chatter and footsteps of agents walking past the open doorway eventually bled into a distant symphony of white noise. Time never felt as though it was working fully whenever they remained like this. Silent and content in each other’s embrace. 

She often wished moments such as these would never find their end. But as all good things do, eventually Moira moved her hands away from her girlfriend’s waist. She moved her fingers below Angela’s jaw just enough to tilt her head up and meet her eyes. 

“You’re still upset, aren’t you?”

“…I just want you to reconsider”

The redhead wasted no time in shaking her head and leaning down to quickly peck Angela’s lips with a teasing kiss. 

“Moira, I’m serious”

“I’m well aware. You were as serious about this nonsense as you were yesterday, and the day before that, and the day before that-“

Angela’s face morphed into one of challenge. She raised a single eyebrow as if daring Moira to try and make light of the worries that had been plaguing her mind for months. 

“I’m sorry, darling, I just don’t want to have to keep discussing this”

“But you deserve to-“

“-Nothing. Not a single second of praise should be taken from you or your legacy, angel” 

As far as the rest of the world was currently concerned, Angela “Mercy” Ziegler had already reached her pinnacle in the medical world. Few could imagine her exceeding past being the top leading researcher of her field. Her utilization of nanobiotic healing technology had been, quite literally, life changing. Along with her public recruitment into Overwatch after, she had changed the tides in the war in ways that would irrefutably place her in journals, textbooks, and historical records for centuries to come. 

However, her latest advancements with on-field revival would likely meet publication by this year’s end. The regeneration of decayed cells, or what she would soon call the ability to “resurrect” fallen soldiers, was something beyond what anyone could have ever dreamed a young orphaned girl from Switzerland could ever accomplish. Angela was looking at an indescribable scientific breakthrough that would immortalize her for eternity. 

And she wanted nothing more than to share that glory. 

Since the final data collection Angela had been trying to convince Moira to allow her name to be credited alongside her own in the final publication. It was her girlfriend who had reviewed, tested, and checked every last detail towards the final phases of her research. Though Moira repeatedly refused to even humor the thought. 

The two had been at a stalemate arguing over the matter for the past 5 months. 

While Angela’s heart was certainly in the right place, Moira knew what implications would be drawn by her title aside Dr. Ziegler’s. The medical journals across the globe had already voiced their distrust of Moira’s more questionable methods years ago. Even if her results showed genuine prospects of expanding past the boundaries of scientific discovery, her use of “unique” animal testing had been called everything from “wrong” to “malicious” to “unholy”. 

It was in and of itself a miracle Overwatch had turned a blind eye and allowed her to work with the methodologies she preferred. 

For the last decade of her career Moira had been treading water within a sea of vindictive glances and hushed whispers by affronted colleagues who did nothing but analyze every singular line of her publicized journals. Each looking for the final nail to place in her coffin. 

Now though, she was beginning to reestablish herself in light of Overwatch’s ever growing success. Together, privately behind closed doors, she and Angela had become a force of nature to which the worlds of science and medicine had never known. They were making strides that regardless of who claimed what, their respective fields were being left stunned. 

Overwatch had given her the power needed to discover what she desired to know, while also protecting the radiant beacon of light that had changed the course of her fate in a way she could only ever describe as a blessing. 

It was the place that had given her someone to fight for. 

Unfortunately, that also meant that the fighting no longer solely came from the war alone. Everything they had worked on together since they had begun dating had been split in terms of credibility, as per was their original agreement. Claiming the work to be the result of many individuals’ efforts made it easier for certain means of discretion. 

However once Angela announced this nothing would matter in comparison. This accomplishment would become a mark in time itself. She would permanently be revered as the savior she had long since strived to become, and she deserved nothing less. 

It would make every tear she shed and friend she lost worth the sleepless nights. Every long night turned morning hidden within the shadows of their shared apartment where Angela would cry from frustration. 

It would make her happy. And there was nothing Moira wanted more in the world than that. 

Deciding that she had had enough of the sour mood, Moira bent down just enough to suddenly lift Angela off of the ground. 

Before the blonde could object or even let out a sound of surprise, Moira moved to pepper an onslaught of kisses against her face and neck. 

”MOIRA!” 

The taller woman swung them in a circle as Angela began to smacked at her sides to try and escape her now tickling grip.

“Smile, angel! Come now, not a second more of this!”

“Moira! Put me down-“

“The headlines will rave, ‘Extraordinarily beautiful doctor, hero, marvel undeserved of the world-’”

“Moira!”

The sound of their laughter could be heard from all the way down the hall, but Moira had long since found that nothing aside from the woman in her arms mattered. 

She gave her angel another spin before placing her safely back onto the ground. Angela immediately tugged her girlfriend down to her eye level by the knot of her tie. She fisted the fabric tightly before giving Moira a less-than-appropriate-for-work kiss that stole the breath from both their lungs.

“What did I do to deserve someone like you?”

“Shouldn’t that be my line?”

Angela hummed her disagreement before trying, and failing, to push back the strands of red hair that had become mussed and unruly from her spinning.

“If you don’t start behaving, I’m returning your anniversary present”

“Oh? What if I were to say I only want you as my gift”

“Hmmm, I’d ask, just me? Or me wearing that beautiful lingerie set from the store you loved so very much?”

The brilliant flush that lit up the very tips of Moira’s ears caused Angela to kneel over with laughter. She narrowly managed to get a head start out of the lab and down the hall just as Moira began to earnestly chase after her for being a tease.

Their shared laughter echoed down the corridor’s like windchimes being carried further and further away. Unbeknownst to Moira, hidden just behind the doorframe where they had just passed laid two unmarked bags. 

Inside one rested the promised lingerie set. Freshly washed, gift wrapped, and ready for their date tomorrow night. 

In the other, there was a small silver wrist watch. Designed and made by Angela’s own two hands, with the help of Torbjörn and his workshop. 

There was nothing particularly flashy about the piece, but along the main case’s underside rested an engraved Gaelic saying Angela often heard Moira mumble in her ear late at night when she believed Angela to be asleep. 

“A chuisle mo chroí”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you who may not know, “A chuisle mo chore” is a popular Irish saying. It translates into either "Pulse of my heart" or "My pulse".
> 
> Be sure to leave a comment! I love reading what you all think so far~

**Author's Note:**

> This one is dedicated to my boy Wulfpyre~ Getting to do edits for his stories, while also having the chance to watch him grow as an author, means the world to me! I I hope y’all check out his stuff sometime<3
> 
> Stay tuned for the next update<3 Also PLEASE! Be sure to let me know what you think<3


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